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Answer 1 What happens when we die?
This question requires a little background in order to be able to answer it.
When God created all of life on earth He made different kinds of bodies ( 1Cor.15:35-50 ). He also made different kinds of life, such as plants, animals and humans. Adam, the human, was the only one in which He breathed a part of Himself into him. Adam had a body like every animal. He had life in his blood just as all animals did. ( Lev.17:11, 14 ). But, God made man in His image and also breathed into Him some of God’s own Spirit (life), which gave man a spiritual life that no other creation had. ( Gen.1:26-27; 2:7) God is a Spirit (Jn.4:24) and in order to know and fellowship with God man needed a spirit also. Adam’s body drew it’s life from the earth, like all of the animals ( food, water, air ). Adam’s spirit drew it’s life from God. His soul ( personality ) could draw life and find communion from both directions, the earth ( creation ) and from God ( the Creator ). Death would happen if and when he could no longer draw life from one of those sources. Death is separation, not annihilation. When God gave man a command and he disobeyed God, he sinned and it caused a break between him and God. God is Holy and He could not remain holy and tolerate ( disobedience ) sin. When Adam’s sin caused the break, the spirit in Adam ( & Eve ) immediately died just as God had said it would. ( Gen.2:15-17 ) Because of his spiritual death Adam’s being was no longer whole. He was broken, corrupted in his inner being and he began to physically die. Before he died he and Eve gave birth to children, but Adam could not pass along to them what he no longer had. All of his children and their descendents would be born with a dead spirit, which meant that they would be separated from God, which meant that they could neither know God nor follow Him. After the fall, all mankind would be born with an ungodly ( sinful ) nature. ( Ps.51:5; Eph.2:1; Rom.3:10-12, 23 ) The ungodly, or “natural” man does not have the ability to know God. (1Cor.2:14) If a person is already “spiritually” dead ( separated from the source of spiritual life; God ), then he can still live as long as he draws life through his body. If his body dies, then his person ( soul ) becomes separated from the life which he has drawn through the earth and his body. He then has no way to connect, neither to God, nor to all of the people and things of God’s creation. That includes all things tha tGod has created, including all of time and space. The person who dies physically, while they are dead spiritually ( dead in sin; Ezek.3:18-19; Jn.8:21; 2Pet.2:12 ), then becomes dead in two ways, which means he is eternally dead. His person remains aware, but is trapped in a state of torment forever. ( Mat.25:46; Mk.9:43-48) This place and condition of eternal death is called hell. The Bible says that it is marked by three things that will never cease. They are fire, (some kind of pain), the worm, ( perhaps remembering our sin and refusal to believe, remorse or regret), and outer darkness, ( the abyss, which seems to be some kind of utter isolation and loneliness). ( Mt.23:33; 25:30, 41, 46; Mk.9:43-48 ) If a person is able to get their “spiritual” life back again before they die physically, then they will never be truly or completely dead. Even if they die physically, they will remain alive spiritually. When Christ died on the cross he paid the price and made the way that man could come back to God and be forgiven of their sin and made clean. Every man could be reconciled to God. ( 2Cor.5:17-21 ) Once forgiven, God gives man His Spirit who comes into them and gives new birth to their dead spirit. They are born again. They only way to
receive this new, spiritual life is to believe in Christ and receive the free
gift that He offers. We are saved by believing God ( faith;
Rom.10:9-17; Heb.11:1-6 ). God sees our faith in His Son and he counts
it as righteousness ( even though we have not been righteous; Rom.4:1-8 ). He
gives salvation as a free gift. ( Eph.2:4-8 ) He promises that if we come to
Him, He will receive us and will never lose us; that we will live forever.
( Jn.3:16; 4:14; 5:25-28; 6:33-40,58; 8:32,36; 10:27-30; 11:25-27;
14:1,6,9,16-18; 16:33; 17:2,3; 20:28-29; The Bible indicates that this gift of salvation comes immediately, so that we are a new creature; receive His Spirit now and can have abundant life here on earth. ( Jn.10:10; 14:16-17; Rom.8:8-18; 2Cor.5:17 ) If it were possible for God to give me “eternal” or “everlasting” life today, and then I could lose that life a few days later, then God would be a liar, because He had not given me “eternal” life, but a temporary and conditional life. God is not like that. (Php.1:6; 1Jn.5:11-13) When a believer dies physically God will carry them to a place called paradise ( the bosom of Abraham ) where they will wait for the great resurrection day when all of God’s children will get their new physical bodies. ( Jn.5:28-29; 6:39-40,44; 1Cor.15:12-26, 35-57; 2Cor.5:1-8; 1Jn.3:1-3 ) When Christ comes, those who are already “dead in Christ” will rise first, and those are still alive. (Titus 2:13; 1Thes.4:13-18) Then, we will get our new and glorious bodies which will not be able to sin, will never feel pain and will never die. The wicked dead also go to a place of torment where they wait to be resurrected for their final judgment. ( Lk.16:19-31; Rev.20:11-15 ) At that time they will have to confess God, but it will be too late. (Php.2:10-11)
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